Acker

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Here follow ancestral profiles of the earliest known progenitors of many group members (as well as several profiles of families not yet represented). At the end of each profile are listed the participants who descend from that ancestor along with their 12-marker test values. Since there are a number of related branches whose exact connection to an immigrant ancestor is not necessarily known, some participants might have more than one entry.

JOHANN ADAM ECKHARDT (WIESBADEN, GERMANY TO DUTCHESS CO., NY):
The immigrant ancestor of the Dutchess County, New York line of this surname was Johann Adam Eckhardt of Wiesbaden, state of Hessen, Germany who arrived in this country as part of the 1710 Palatine emigration. He resided primarily in the region of Rhinebeck, Dutchess County, and his family spread from there to points north along both sides of the Hudson River. His first wife Elisabetha Catharina Geib died a couple of years after their arrival in this country, shortly following the birth of their seventh child (and the first born in this country) Adam then remarried to Anna Rau, and the eleven children born of this union provide the bulk of his descendants, since only his eldest son and daughter from the first marriage are known to have had families of their own. The lines of descent from his seven surviving sons provide the most prolific of the early Eckert/Acker lines that populated New York state.
Because he has been well-documented in various sources of New York State Palatine families (most notably, in the monumental work of Henry Z. Jones) suffice it to say here in regards to his ancestry that Johann Adam was the son of Samuel and Anna Maria (Habig) Eckhardt of Naurod, and grandson of Gerlach Eckhardt of Koenigsburg, two towns in the Wiesbaden region. A search is currently being made of the church records of that area for all related branches of the family, and periodic updates will be posted here in the event that any new breakthroughs are made.
(See profiles for Nicholas of Schwedelbach and Jacob of Ouster Paltz below).
Descendants:
14117 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
17058 Ackert 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
20384 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
22736 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
22952 Eckert 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
24955 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
N13555 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
72101 Ackert 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
208724 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
231584 (Eckert)Wright 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
14079 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 13 11 30

JOHANNES ACKER (OF BEEKMAN, DUTCHESS CO., NY):
Johannes was born in Rhinebeck in 1722, a son of the immigrant ancestor Johan Adam Eckhardt and second wife Anna Rau. The baptisms of some of his children by wife Christina Wies/Weiss can be found in the Reformed churches of Stone Arabia (Montgomery Co.) and Albany, as well as at Schaghticoke (Rensselaer Co.) where some of his nephews later settled. Upon his return to Dutchess Co., Johannes settled in the Beekman precinct, where his name appears on the tax lists from 1756-1778. Further information can be found in the Ackert portion of The Settlers of the Beekman Patent, by Frank J. Doherty which (despite a couple of minor false leads) contains what little is known of Johannes while he resided there.
Until quite recently, descendancy beyond the children of Johannes and Christina has remained in the realm of speculation, even though his sons Johan and Adam were in Beekman at least until 1800. However the pooled efforts of several researchers have revealed the trails of migration for what turns out to be none other than three (so far) of the children of Johannes and Christina: Adam and sister Hannah (Acker) Vandervoort left Beekman for the Cobourg region of Ontario, Canada, while Johan Jr. and family made their way up into Delaware and Schoharie counties before moving on to the western part of New York state and beyond.
Descendants of the Beekman branch of Ackers can now be grateful to the late Roy Acker, whose DNA provides the icing on the cake, and closure to one of the longest-standing of the Dutchess Co. Acker mysteries.
Descendants:
24955 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29

WILLIAM ACKER (OF SO. BETHLEHEM, ALBANY CO. AND VERONA, ONEIDA CO., NY):
William Acker was born about 1775, probably in present-day Greene County, New York, which at that time was still part of Albany and Ulster counties. The fact that the 1855 census lists his county of birth as Albany, and the 1865 census as Greene, indicates that he was probably born in the upper portion of Greene that was taken from Albany. He first appears on the 1820 federal census in the township of Bethlehem in southern Albany Co., though he was probably in that vicinity as early as 1800, if not before, since his eldest son Henry was likely born there around 1804/05. It is impossible to know his exact whereabouts in 1810, since the pre-1850 censuses name heads of household only – it might be that William was living with in-laws or some other relative in Bethlehem or Coeymans township, since he has not been found as head of his own household.
That he named his eldest son Henry suggests that William’s own father might have been named Henry, in following with the patronymic system of naming children which was still very much in effect, and the use of the middle initial H. for his other sons (except for Peter F., named for his maternal grandfather) lends further support to this theory. In fact, the nearest Ackers, who lived just across the Hudson River from Bethlehem, were the family of Hendrick and Margaret (Landt) Acker of Schodack. There was another Hendrick Acker of around the same age (and apparently some relation to Hendrick of Schodack) who married Elizabeth Becker, and children of both men can be found among some of the same church records in surrounding counties. Compelling cases could be made for either of these Hendricks being the father of William, but to date no hard documentation has been found to either substantiate or refute either theory.
The name of William’s first wife has never been learned. His son Henry and a daughter (probably named Sarah) were the only surviving children from this first union. He married secondly, prior to 1830, Mary, daughter of Peter and Franckse “Frances” (Vandebogart) Flansburg and they had 12 children, only five of whom survived to adulthood (Albert H., Peter F., Frances Elizabeth, William Henry, and Nancy). William remained in Albany Co. until 1840 (Coeymans township), at which time he moved his family to Verona in Oneida Co., close to the Erie Canal, where he resided until his death, sometime between 1865 and 1870, aged about 90 or upwards.
Note: in 1830 and 1840 there was also a Martin Acker (aka Ackerson) residing in Coeymans township among a group of families that were later associated with William’s son Henry, who remained in Albany Co. However, no trace of Martin’s family has yet been found from 1850 onward, so any connection to William remains in the realm of speculation. Intriguing, though, that both men disappeared from Coeymans around the same time.
William’s descendancy from Johan Adam remains to be established.
Descendants:
14117 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
20384 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29
14079 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 13 11 29
Note: The mutation shown at points 10 and 12 of the latter’s strand actually represents only a single one-step mutation, due to a mirroring effect that occurs at those two particular points (i.e., when a difference occurs at one, a corresponding difference shows up at the other). This special case is explained more fully on the Family Tree DNA website.

TUNIS ECKERT (OF PIKE & BRADFORD CO'S, PA AND BLACK HAWK CO., IA):
Tunis Eckert was born in Dutchess Co., NY according to the 1855 Broome Co., NY census. His year of birth varies between 1804 and 1814 from one source to the next, but is likely closer to the earlier date. His family (though found variously as Acker, Eckert and Eckhart in public records) has favored the Eckert spelling down to the present. Tunis can be found on the Pike Co., PA census in 1840 and 1850, in the townships of Dingman and Delaware, respectively. He then moved to Conklin, Broome Co., NY nearby another branch of Ackert from Dutchess Co. By 1860 he had moved back into PA (Windham, Bradford Co.) and thereafter to Cedar Falls, IA where he died between 1880 and 1882.
His wife’s surname, while some sources suggest Pierce, was more likely Price, since upon Catherine’s remarriage subsequent to Tunis’ death, her marriage record names parents as William Price of PA and Margaret Sickles of NJ. In addition, son Charles Eckert’s marriage record names his mother as Catherine Price. It is assumed that Catherine herself provided the info in one or both instances, and is therefore to be believed over the “Pierce” theory (the source of which is unknown). The seven known children of Tunis and Catherine were Sarah Jane, John, Isaiah, Martha Ophelia, Susan J., Charles A., and Orlando.
Note: there was a Teunis Eckert born in 1776 in Dutchess Co., and baptized in the Poughkeepsie Reformed Church, a son of Johannes and Maria (Garritson) Eckert. He married Elizabeth Dennison and moved to Ontario, Canada, not far from some Ackers who had moved there from Beekman (also in Dutchess Co. -- see Johannes Acker of Beekman above) Because these are the only two known instances of the name Tunis (a derivative of Antonius/Anthony) among Johann Adam’s descendants at that time period, we wonder if this elder Tunis could be the father or uncle of the younger one. However, this currently remains conjecture, and Tunis’ descent from Johann Adam remains to be determined.
Descendants:
22952 Eckert 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29

JOHN ACKER (OF KINGSBURY, WASHINGTON CO., NY):
John Acker was born abt. 1779 in Dutchess Co., NY according to the 1855 Kingsbury census. He married Martha, daughter of Revolutionary War patriot Micajah Elliot, and they make their first appearance as a married couple on the 1800 Kingsbury census, “next door” to the Elliot family. He can be found in that township consistently thereafter, and died there, apparently before the 1865 census enumeration.
A couple of slight mysteries revolve around the lineup of John and Martha’s children. Although they are almost certainly the parents of both John (b. 1801 at Sandy Hill, a hamlet in Kingsbury township) and James F. (b. 1803), only one male child appears with them on the 1810 census. However, by 1820, two male children of the appropriate age group were enumerated, so it might be speculated that one or the other of the sons were in the household of a relative in 1810. In any case, since the elder John is the only Acker family known to be living at Kingsbury, we are quite confident that he must be the progenitor of the younger generations of Acker who lived in that town. But even in the event that one of the “sons” turned out to be a nephew or otherwise related, the DNA results would remain the same.
The other problem concerns a Sarah Remington who can be found living with John from 1850 onward. While her age would immediately suggest that she was his daughter, the 1855 census lists Sarah and her son as John’s sister and nephew, respectively. While biologically possible, of course, we wonder if the census data could be erroneous and Sarah actually his daughter.
Note: the only child of John and Martha for whom actual documentation has yet been found is daughter Juliette Amanda who married Robert Stiles Faxon. There was another female child of around the same age enumerated in John’s household in the pre-1850 censuses, and no doubt this was Sarah who married Remington. But again, further research must be conducted to determine whether she was his sister (as per 1855) or his daughter.
John’s descent from Johann Adam is yet to be established.
Descendants:
22736 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29

MICHAEL ACKER AND CORNELIUS "ACKER" (OF WARREN, HERKIMER CO.):
With Cornelius "Acker" of Warren, Herkimer Co., NY (1810 census) we've been thrown a red herring worthy of the very finest of mystery novels. Long thought to be the father of Michael Acker who first appears there the same census year, Cornelius would seem to be the logical choice, and a number of (ultimately coincidental) clues stack up in favor of the theory. For one thing, Cornelius' wife Catherine was a daughter of Michael Hilsinger, and so it would make sense that they would name a son after the maternal grandfather, in keeping with the patronymic practices that were still very much in use at that time. Furthermore, the name Cornelius has figured prominently among Michael Acker's descendants.
As it turns out, however, Cornelius has proven not to be an Acker after all, but rather a branch of the unrelated Dutch Eckerson family from Schoharie Co., who sometimes shortened the name to Ecker. Not only was his stay in Warren relatively brief (apparently he soon returned to Schoharie Co.) but there is no evidence that he ever had a son named Michael, and (except in a scattering of public records) his family has preferred the original Eckerson spelling down to the present.
Where does this leave Michael Acker? DNA results have confirmed what our more current research has suggested for some time -- that Michael was the son of Hendrick (Henry) and Margaret (Landt) Acker of Schodack, NY and later Cato, NY., (and also the twin brother of Albert "Bartholomew" Acker of Cato). One of the primary clues (aside from Michael's age, which was already a close match for Henry's son) was the appearance of Michael and his brother David in the same church at Minden, Montgomery Co. and within the same time frame (many Warren residents appear in this church). David shortly moved back to Schodack, but we are fortunate that he left behind this small trail.
A second nice bit of evidence involves the Benjamin Eckert who appears in Warren beginning in 1820, who we at first thought only some distant cousin or other of Michael Acker, but who we have more recent reason to believe was actually Michael's younger brother. See entry for Benjamin Eckert next below.

Descendants:
N13555 Acker 14 21 15 10 13 15 11 12 11 12 11 29

BENJAMIN ACKER/ECKERT (OF WARREN, HERKIMER CO.)
Benjamin Acker married Freelove Weldon on 8 Jan 1807 in the Kinderhook Ref. Ch. She is recorded as "Wheeler" Weldon, which seems to be a simple clerical error -- perhaps misheard by the minister who recorded it. They appear in Schodack, Rensselaer Co. in 1810 on the same page with Henry "Acer" whose wife was Margaret Landt/Lent, who were the parents of Michael Acker already of Warren (see entry for Michael Acker above). Michael's twin brother Bartholomew and their brother David (both mentioned in Michael's profile) appear together on another page in Schodack.
Benjamin and Freelove's first several children were born in Rensselaer Co. one of these being Edmond Acker. Since Edmond is not an Acker name, we are pretty sure that Freelove was the daughter of Edmond Weldon who also resided in Schodack. By 1820 Benjamin and Freelove joined Michael Acker in Warren, Herkimer Co. Perhaps he and David Acker went there together around 1815 (the year that David had a child baptized in the church at Minden).
While Benjamin's age varies somewhat from one census to the next, we believe he is an undocumented child of Henry and Margaret, and that he was likely born 1790/91.
We are not sure why Benjamin, alone of Henry's children, reverted to the original Eckert spelling of the surname; likewise we are not sure why Edmond (alone of Benjamin and Freelove's children) preferred the more usual Acker (sometimes Ackert) spelling when his siblings continued to use Eckert.
Benjamin died between 1840 and 1850 and his widow moved to Onondaga Co. where some of their children already resided; others moved out west.
(this family is not yet represented)

NICHOLAS ECKHARDT (OF SCHWEDELBACH, GERMANY AND SCHOHARIE CO., NY):
According to one of his marriage records, Nicholas Eckhardt (born perhaps abt. 1688) hailed from a place called Schwedelbach, near Kaiserslautern in the southern Rhineland-Pfalz region of the German Palatinate. Like Johann Adam of Wiesbaden (above), Nicholas the 1710 settlers at West Camp (on west side of Hudson River, in present-day Ulster Co., NY). His probable relation to Palatiner Jacob Eckhardt of "Ouster Paltz" is detailed more fully in Jacob's profile below.
Life in the tar camps quickly proved unfavorable, and whereas Joh. Adam moved across the Hudson to Rhinebeck, Nicholas (following participation in a 1711 military expedition to Canada) was among a number of West Campers who relocated north to Schoharie County.
Despite recent intriguing evidence to the contrary, we can only assume for now (if our lone Nicholas representative's line of descent proves accurate) that Nicholas and Johann Adam were unrelated after all. However, only future participation from various other branches of the Nicholas lineage will provide us the comparative results necessary to determine his prototype DNA pattern, as we've already established for Johann Adam. No doubt this and several other profiles herein will need to be modified as new results come in.
Among several spelling variation used by Nicholas' descendants, "Ecker", "Aker" and "Acre" appear to be the most usual.
See note for Jacob Eckhardt of Ouster Paltz, next below.
Descendants:
132060 Ecker 12 23 14 10 11 14 12 12 12 12 13 28

JACOB ECKHARDT (OF "OUSTER PALTZ", GERMANY AND MONTGOMERY CO., NY)
Jacob first appears as one of the minor children of widow Gertrude Eckhardt, one of the 1710 residents of West Camp. The best estimate of his date of birth is ca. 1690-95, and his German place of origin was named in at least one source as "Ouster Paltz near Kaiserslautern." Because he followed Nicholas (of Schwedelbach) up into Schoharie County, and because Schwedelbach is itself within the Kaiserslautern vicinity, we assume that Jacob and Nicholas were probably closely related -- perhaps even brothers. A growing pile of evidence seems to support the assumption.
Some while after arriving in Schoharie Co., Jacob moved up onto the Stone Arabia patent in the adjacent county of Montgomery. Among other spelling variations, his numerous descendants have tended to favor "Eacker", "Eaker" or "Ecker."
Recent research also points toward a possible connection between these men and Johan Adam of Wiesbaden (above). For one thing, Schwedelbach lies only about 50 miles south of Wiesbaden. Certain naming patterns (i.e. Joh. Adam had an infant named Nicholas) as well as migration patterns within NY state and other clues, also lend intriguing support to the theory. However, the initial DNA results of our sole Nicholas descendant is contradictory, and so we must rely on future participation from both the Nicholas and Jacob lineages for the full story to emerge.
Note: we believe the following participant might be a descendant of Jacob, rather than of Nicholas above, but (for now) are listing descendants of both men under Nicholas in the Y-DNA chart found elsewhere on this site.
Descendants:
131203 Acker 12 23 14 10 11 14 12 12 12 12 13 28

JOHAN ADAM ACKER (OF LUNENBURG, NOVA SCOTIA)
Johan Adam (1723- 1791) and wife arrived in Halifax (on the ship Gale) from the German Palatinate late in the year 1752. Within a year he had settled a few miles to the southwest in Lunenburg, which was to be the home for succeeding generations of his family. The births of his six children by wife Anna Catharina Hahn (aka Henns) are fairly well preserved in a document nearly as old as the town itself.
Adam's place of origin is believed to be somewhere in the region of Osthofen, just west of where the Rhine river curves down toward Worms. Osthofen is less than 30 miles southeast (as the crow flies) from Wiesbaden, where the earlier Johan Adam of New York's Hudson Valley hailed from. About the same distance to the southwest of Osthofen lies Kaiserslautern, which was the ancestral homeland of New York's other two 1710 Palatine Eckhardts, Nicholas and Jacob, who settled in the Schoharie/Mohawk Valley regions. Thus, it will be interesting to see whether the often-supposed relation between these two Johan Adams (as well as others from the same region of Germany) proves to be correct.
The representative of the Lunenburg Acker lineage descends from Adam and Catharina's eldest son John Valentine who was born in 1756.
(results forthcoming)

WOLFERT ECKER (OF WESTCHESTER CO., NY)
The brothers Jan and Wolfert Ecker (Acker) were born at Midwout (now Long Island, NY), the only sons of Stephen Ecker(t), an early settler of New Netherland said to have come from the province of Groningen, Holland. Stephen's wife was a daughter of Jan Snedeker, and while there has been some debate as to which one (Tryntje or Styntje) the most compelling case can be made for Styntje (the Dutch form of "Christina").
The brothers moved to the Tarrytown area of Westchester County at an early date, and because Jan had no sons who survived, Wolfert therefore became the progenitor of the entire Westchester line of Ackers, many of whom still reside there today. (Though we know of at least one instance in which an Acker from the Johan Adam of Wiesbaden line gained admittance to the Holland Society of New York based on a bogus genealogy linking him to a "supposed" son of Wolfert's brother Jan).
Wolfert was immortalized by Washington Irving in a fictional account called Wolfert's Roost (his name for the subject's Dutch cottage which itself is supposed to have formed the very foundation of Irving's own "Sunnyside"). This has resulted in a blur between fact and fiction that Irving surely never intended -- an actual study of history quickly reveals that Wolfert simply could not have been born early enough to have served as privy councillor to Peter Stuyvesant, or any of the other fictional accounts attributed to him by Irving. But the legend lives on, and Wolfert's family represents the earliest Acker lineage in this country.
Descendants:
(This family is not yet represented)

PETER ACKER (OF PENDLETON DIST., SC):
Theories abound regarding the possible origins of progenitor Peter Acker of Pendleton Dist., SC. A number of sources state that he arrived in this country from Germany, and some even suggest a direct connection to a William Ecker (aka Aker, Acker, etc) of Hunterdon Co., NJ (whose will was written in German). Another variation (from a bio of one of Peter Acker Jr.’s children who moved to MS) claims that Peter had come from Pennsylvania. Efforts to substantiate any of these theories with documentation have so far met with failure.
Peter apparently passed briefly through Virginia in the early 1770’s, as sons William and Joseph claimed that state as their place of birth on the 1850 census. However, no records have yet been found in Virginia, nor evidence suggesting that he resided in areas of VA or SC where colonies of Germans were known to have settled.
Here we are presented with a bit of a dilemma, one ideally suited to DNA testing. Several current participants claim descent from Peter of Pendleton; unfortunately, the results so far can be divided into two subsets which do not match and we are left with the question as to which subset represents the actual Peter descendancy. The various ancestries can be substantiated by the paper trail only back to a certain point and then bridged back to Peter in a published genealogy which is admittedly flawed. Barring adoptions or infidelities within the family (which is always a concern in any family history) we can only guess that certain assumptions made by the author of the Acker genealogy must be in error. Let us hope that it can one day be resolved through the participation of others with more fully established ancestry.
Supposed descendants:
29647 Acker 13 25 15 11 11 14 11 12 11 13 11 30
89785 Acker 13 25 15 11 11 14 11 12 11 13 11 30
21295 Acker 15 21 14 10 14 14 11 12 12 12 11 28
51873 Acker 15 21 14 10 14 14 11 12 12 12 11 28
43456 Acker 15 21 14 10 14 14 11 12 12 12 11 28

JOHN ACHOR (OF VA AND CLINTON CO., OH):
(This profile was submitted by a cousin of the participant whose DNA represents this family).
John Achor was born 14 Dec 1758, probably in Virginia. Although he is listed in Official Roster of Soldiers of the American Revolution Who Were Buried in The State of Ohio, Vol. 3, p. 11, no verification of his military service has been found in government records. The marriage of John “Acre” and Catharine Fitherling (Fitterling, Featherling, etc.) is recorded on 8 Sep 1789 in Frederick Co, VA. John is listed as John “Acre” in the 1820 census in Green Twp, Clinton Co, OH. He died 24 Aug 1840 and is buried in the Achor Cemetery in Green Twp, Clinton Co, OH.
Robert L. Achor wrote about this family in his Notes and Materials on the Achor Family of Southwestern Ohio, Including Richoux and Borne Families of Louisiana, Worz, Smithson and Hickey Families of Ohio (1970) and his supplement to that publication (1986-1987).
John and Catharine were the parents of at least 10 children born between 1791 and 1813, all of whom lived to adulthood and married: Jacob, John, George, Susannah, Samuel, Sarah, Mary, Elizabeth, Daniel, Catherine. All except Samuel are mentioned in their father’s will, filed in 1840 in Clinton Co., OH.
Robert L. Achor concluded in his 1986-1987 supplement that the most likely father of John Achor (1758-1840) is a Johan George Acker who arrived in Philadelphia on the ship Phoenix from Rotterdam on 15 Nov 1749. While no proof of that has yet been found, evidence supports the hypothesis. Robert L. Achor knew that, in Virginia, a John “Aker” had applied for a survey in 1769, and a John “Acre” was a chain man on a survey crew. He also knew of a 1771 deed for 239 acres from Lord Fairfax to John “Aker” and a 1779 deed of 329 acres from Lord Fairfax to John “Aker” – the latter apparently deeded by John “Acre” to John Sherman Woodcock in Frederick Co, VA, in 1804. (There is also a 1786 deed from John and Mary “Acre” to Jacob Clyne for 239 acres.) This fits with the move of the Achor family from Virginia to Ohio in the early 1800s. What Robert L. Achor had not found prior to his 1986-1987 supplement, was a small journal located in the front of Will Book 'A-B', covering the period of 1810 to 1816, in Clinton Co, OH, mentioning that in 1814 John “Acre” Junior was appointed administrator of the estate of John “Acre” Senior, who died intestate.
Although no single record specifically says that John Sr. was the father of John Jr., and no record specifically says that John Sr. was the John who, with his wife, Mary, owned property in Frederick Co, VA, prior to the 1789 marriage of John Achor (1758-1840) to Catharine Fitherling there, this all seems to fit together. And the John who died in 1814 may indeed be the Johan George Acker who arrived in Philadelphia in 1749. Perhaps the DNA project will prove or disprove the hypothesis.
(Note: see entry for Bert F. Eckard, next below.)
Descendants:
34089 Achor 13 24 14 11 11 14 13 12 12 13 13 29
Possible relatives:
38780 Eckard 13 24 14 11 11 14 12 12 12 13 14 29

BERT F. ECKARD (OF CANADA AND LITTLE FALLS, HERKIMER CO., NY):
Little is known at this writing except that Bert was apparently born in Canada in 1877 and came to Herkimer County around the age of 5. It might be that his family had returned to New York after only a brief stay in Canada, and it’s also quite possible he was related to the Lambert J. Eckert family of Little Falls who can be found living nearby Bert in 1910. Family tradition has it that Bert is likely of German origin (and though his father’s place of birth is difficult to read on the 1910 census, it is clearly something other than New York state) This theory is bolstered by the fact that Lambert’s own father was German-born, according to the same census, and the mothers of both Bert and Lambert were born in NY. But whether Bert and Lambert were brothers, cousins or totally unrelated is yet to be determined.
The results reveal something of an unexpected surprise. The DNA of the representative of this family matches quite closely that of the participant from the family of John Achor, next above. While it is not an exact match, it is close enough to suggest that they share a perhaps far distant common ancestor from the same "Eckhardt" lineage, and unrelated to either the Wiesbaden Eckhardts or to Peter of Pendleton described in the previous profiles. Again, we hope that a more complete outline of the Achor/Eckard line will emerge through further participation.
Descendants:
38780 Eckard 13 24 14 11 11 14 12 12 12 13 14 29
Possible relatives:
34089 Achor 13 24 14 11 11 14 13 12 12 13 13 29

HEINRICK & PHILLIP JACOB ACKER (ALSACE-LORRAINE TO LEHIGH CO., PA)
Phillip Jacob was born in 1698, in Spabach, Alsace (near Altkirch in the Haut Alsace region). (Note: anther version says he was born 1696 in Germany). About 1730 "Jacob" and a brother emigrated to this country on the English ship "Loyal Judith."
The brothers settled in Lehigh Co., PA and Jacob is buried in the Ziegel Church grounds there.
The representative of Jacob's family line belongs to a branch who moved through Ohio and settled in Doniphan Co., Kansas.
Heinrich, the presumed brother of Phillip Jacob, was born 14 Oct 1700, possibly in Germany, and this is the only info provided by the participant who claims descent from him. Because the results of these two participants match very closely, we have no reason to doubt that their respective ancestors were brothers, and are grouping them together pending further evidence.
Our two Hale participants who match this profile were informed by a relative that their ancestor John Hale (b. ca 1814) was actually an Aker who was orphaned into a Hale family and thus adopted the Hale surname. Current research suggests that this likely occurred within a branch of the Aker(s) family that moved into Augusta and Wythe Counties, VA. Of Particular interest is the Michael Aker(s)/Acker who was born 1766 in PA to George Heinrich Acker, and who (upon the death of his first wife Catherine Hepner) apparently left his first set of children to be farmed out by the Overseers of the Poor of Augusta Co. while he started a second family in Wythe Co. Investigation is ongoing as to whether John was a son or other close relative of Michael Aker(s).
Descendants:
51131 Acker 13 25 14 10 11 15 12 12 13 13 14 29
65508 Akers 13 25 14 10 11 16 12 12 13 13 14 29
151402 Aker 13 25 14 10 11 16 12 12 13 13 14 29
212709 Hale 13 25 14 10 11 16 12 12 13 13 14 29
161033 Hale 13 25 14 10 11 16 12 12 13 13 14 29

CLIFFORD F. ACKERSON (OF WYANDOTTE CO., KS)
Clifford was born 14 May 1894 in Kansas City, Wyandotte Co., KS. His father, Lyman Ackerson (b. Apr 1862 OH) was son of pioneer George M. Ackerson who migrated from his native New Jersey to Kansas City by way of Knox Co., Ohio. All that is known of George's parentage is that they were supposedly born in New York state, and probably a branch of the Dutch Eckerson family. A James Ackerson appearing with him on the 1850 Newark, NJ census was almost certainly his younger brother.
Descendants:
53163 Ackerson 13 24 14 11 11 14 12 12 12 14 13 30

AUGUSTUS ECKARDT (OF GERMANY, PHILADELPHIA, AND MILLERSTOWN, PERRY CO., PA)
From an 1878 Fayette Co., IL history: "Augustus von Eckardt was born in one of the Rhenish provinces and served as a surgeon under Napoleon Bonaparte for 14 years. He came to America and married Catherine Weber, who was born and raised in Philadelphia. Augustus died in 1825 and Catherine in 1826 leaving a family of 8 children. Four of these came to Illinois in 1833."
Little else is known of Augustus or his exact Rhenish (Rhineland) province of origin. He is supposed to have settled in Millerstown prior to 1820, the year that his son Augustus Jr. was born. The 1849 marriage of Augustus Jr. in Ramsey, Fayette Co., IL appears to be the earliest public record yet found for this family, though further research is currently under way.
Interestingly, although there are no exact matches yet within this group, perhaps the closest match to this line is the Johann Adam Eckardt family of Wiesbaden, which lies in the Rhineland-Pfalz region.
Descendants:
55298 Eckard 14 22 15 10 12 14 11 12 13 12 11 29

WILLIAM AKERS (OF PA, VA AND GALLATIN CO., IL)
Research on this Akers line seems to be confounded by much misinformation and conflicting data, not least of which being the fact that there were apparently two men named William Akers with wives of the same name residing in the same area of VA, and who are thought by many to be completely unrelated.
That aside, four participants claiming descent from ancestors named "William Akers", and whose DNA strands match closely enough to indicate common ancestry, are included under this profile (at least until further sub-grouping should prove necessary).
The first (pending further details) says only that his family is believed related to "William Akers of Maidenhead, NJ, a Quaker who settled there around 1680." From there his lineage passes through Virginia and into Pennsylvania where it remains until his grandfather's generation.
The second descends from William Akers who was born ca. 1780-90, in either PA or VA, and who by 1809 was among the early settlers of Gallatin Co., IL. He owned 640 acres in the Shawnee Land District, which he purchased between 1814 and 1820, and in 1818 he belonged to the county militia. By an unknown first wife he had five known children probably born in the 1810-c.1825 range: Thomas, William, George Washington, Susanna, and John. By second wife Elizabeth Todd, whom he married in 1828, he had sons Andrew Jackson and Flavius Josephus. William was buried in 1841 between his two wives in Bucks Graveyard at Shawneetown.
Descendants:
52354 Akers 14 24 14 11 11 14 12 12 13 13 13 30
55517 Akers 14 24 14 11 11 14 12 12 13 13 13 29
101048 Akers 14 24 14 12 11 14 12 12 13 13 13 29
101049 Akers 14 24 14 11 11 14 12 12 13 13 13 29

CASPER ECKARD, SR. OF LANCASTER & BERKS CO’S., PA AND AUGUSTA CO., VA

The earliest known record involving Casper in Lancaster County seems to be as a baptismal sponsor for a child of one Michael Bentz in the New Holland Lutheran Church in 1738. He apparently resided variously on both sides of the county line, as both his 1743 marriage to Maria Catharina Ruhlman and the 1745 baptism of their eldest child are listed among the records of Rev. Stover, while their second child was baptized in the Muddy Creek Church in Berks Co.
Three decades later, in 1773, having sold the last of his land holdings, Casper removed with his family from PA and soon thereafter appeared in Augusta Co., VA where his son Casper Jr. had resided since early 1770. The wills of two of Casper and Maria Catherina’s children prove the existence of three sons in all: Casper Jr., Abraham, and Philip. While documentation of these 3 brothers can be found in the counties of Augusta, Rockingham and Pendleton, no trace of spouses or children can be found for the former two. Therefore, Philip is in all likelihood the progenitor of the remaining descendants bearing the Eckard surname in Casper’s lineage.
Interestingly, a Francis Acord who seems to have resided near or with Casper Eckard in Augusta Co. is believed to be related in some way. This is made all the more compelling by the presence of both a (second) Casper Eckert and a Francis Eckert (or Heckert) in the Berks/Lancaster region during the same period when Casper Eckard resided there. Any such relation between Casper and these or the various other Eckard/Eckert families in the Berks/Lancaster vicinity, though a matter of much speculation, has never yet been proven on paper. However, the most important break comes with the recent DNA match between the Casper lineage and that of Peter Eckert of Heidelberg, Lebanon Co., PA whose profile appears next below.
Descendants & related participants:
N65940 Eckard 13 24 14 11 9 14 12 12 11 13 13 29
115653 Eckert 13 24 14 11 9 14 12 12 11 13 13 29
(see also Abraham Eckert of Lancaster Co., below)

PETER ECKERT OF LEBANON CO., PA

Peter was born abt 1778/80, either in NJ or PA, according to various census records. His parentage has not been determined, and little seems to be known of his early life prior to his marriage to Elizabeth Roth (around 1805). From 1820 until his death in 1860 Peter resided in Heidelberg township, most of that time on a 44-acre farm in Schaefferstown which he purchased in 1830. He died intestate, and though the inventory and disbursement of his estate to heirs is on file in Lebanon Co., the land he owned was sold at an estate sale to someone outside the family. However, Peter and Elizabeth’s children continued to reside in Heidelberg Twp. or nearby in Elizabeth Twp. The representative of this family descends from youngest son Michael Eckert (b. 1820) and wife Magdalena Carpenter.
Among the nearest Eckert families to which Peter is thought to possibly belong include a Johan Philip Eckert and wife Anna Margaretha who resided in Lancaster and Lebanon counties; also Johannes Eckert (b. 1707) and wife Angelica Hicks who came to Berks Co, PA from Langenselbold in the Hesse/Nassau region of Germany (two lineages which share similar naming patterns, but whose relationship to each other, if any, has not been established). In fact, until fairly recently, Peter Eckert was thought to be a son of one Philip and Lydia Eckert until Philip’s 1827 will revealed that his own son Peter was already deceased. Similarly, another Peter Eckert who was born in Lower Heidelberg Twp in 1779 to Jonas Eckert and Maria Catherine Ruth also had to be eliminated from consideration, since this Peter was found to have married Salome Wengert and died in 1851, leaving no heirs.
Despite these set-backs, a recent break has been made with the discovery of a DNA match between Peter’s descendant and that of the Casper Eckard family of Lancaster Co. (see profile above). Whether Peter himself descends from Casper, or from a brother or cousin (near or distant) of Casper, we don’t yet know. But we hope this represents only the first of many untanglements in a confusing web of Eckert families clustered around this region of PA.
Descendants & related participants:
115653 Eckert 13 24 14 11 9 14 12 12 11 13 13 29
N65940 Eckard 13 24 14 11 9 14 12 12 11 13 13 29

ABRAHAM ECKERT OF LANCASTER CO., PA

Abraham arrived in PA in 1738 at the age of 52 (according to his ship's passenger log). Shortly thereafter he received warrants for land in Cocalico Twp. (1740) and Brecknock Twp. (1749), and despite the fact that by 1759 he had acquired in excess of 150 acres, a surprising lack of land transfers, church, probate or other records, makes Abraham perhaps the most puzzling of all the early Lancaster/Berks Eckert families.
From a single church record his wife's name has been determined to be Anna Catharina who, upon Abraham's death prior to 1768, remarried to Melchior Jung in 1769. The will of Catharina Jung in 1786 mentions only three children: Agnes, Ernestina, and Greta Barbel. These (with the possible, though unlikely, exception of Agnes) were all born Eckerts. Given Abraham's presumed birth date of 1686, in conjunction with other info that places said daughters' approximate birth years within the 1725-1735 range, there is clearly room for a somewhat larger family that would likely have included a number of older children who (for whatever reasons -- perhaps having already received their portions of Abraham's estate) were not mentioned in their mother's will. It is widely believed that there was at least one son, Abraham Jr., since the name appears elsewhere in the same vicinity; however, one Abraham Eckert Jr. who married Sophia Weber in 1774 could plausibly be either the son or grandson of the elder Abraham, based on the ages/dates involved.
Perhaps Caspar Eckard Sr. whose profile appears above (and whose earliest known appearance in the Lancaster records matches the year of Abraham's arrival) could be another undocumented son of Abraham, though this remains mere conjecture in need of actual substantiation.
Otherwise, this family is not yet represented in this project.

PHILIP H. ACKOR OF PLAINFIELD, NJ

Philip was born abt 1773 and died in Plainfield, NJ in 1840. He and his wife Jane Sayre (who was previously married to a Van Court) can be found among the burial records of the Old First Presbyterian Church there, and generations of their descendants have continued to reside in the Plainfield vicinity. Though nothing conclusive about Philip's ancestry has been verified, tradition has it that the family had come from Holland, perhaps settling in Charleston, SC before coming to NJ. The name was likely Van Ackor, which in turn might have been shortened from Van Ackorman, though this too remains speculation. Little more is known at this point, and this profile will be updated as new info comes to light. It will be interesting to see if this family's DNA will match any of the Dutch Acker or Ackerman families, whose participation in this project we are still awaiting...
Descendants:
N66553 Ackor 13 24 17 9 12 12 11 13 12 14 11 29